by Ken Weingartner, Harness Racing Communications

Freehold, NJ — Three-year-old male pacers Downbytheseaside and Fear The Dragon are neck and neck in this week’s Hambletonian Society/Breeders Crown poll, with a meeting in Wednesday’s elimination of the Hap Hansen Progress Pace at Dover Downs — and another potential meeting in the Nov. 30 final — on the horizon.

Downbytheseaside won last week’s Matron Stakes for 3-year-old male pacers and moved up to the No. 4 spot in this week’s rankings, a position held previously by Fear The Dragon. Downbytheseaside is the 9-5 second choice on the morning line in the Progress Pace elimination, where he starts from the second tier’s post nine with Chris Page driving for trainer Brian Brown.

Fear The Dragon, also trained by Brown, is the 8-5 favorite from post seven with David Miller in the sulky. Fear The Dragon was supplemented to the Progress Pace for $25,000.

Eleven 3-year-old male pacers entered the Progress Pace. The top eight finishers from Wednesday’s elimination advance to the final.

There were no other changes in position in this week’s poll.

A total of seven of the horses ranked in the top 10 will be in action this week.

No. 2 Hannelore Hanover and No. 7 Emoticon Hanover will face each other in Saturday’s TVG Series championship for female trotters at the Meadowlands. No. 6 What The Hill, who won the Breeders Crown for 3-year-old colt and gelding trotters, will face older competition in the TVG Series championship for male trotters.

Also in action Saturday at the Big M will be No. 8 Youaremycandygirl in the Three Diamonds for 2-year-old female pacers and No. 10 Stay Hungry in the Governor’s Cup.

Click here for Saturday’s complete Meadowlands card.

The Hambletonian Society/Breeders Crown poll does not determine Horse of the Year. The U.S. Harness Writers Association votes in December on all Dan Patch Award division winners plus Trotter of the Year, Pacer of the Year and Horse of the Year.

Rankings based on the votes of harness racing media representatives on a 10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1 basis.

HambletonianSociety/Breeders Crown Standardbred Poll: Week 26 – 11/21/2017

Also:Agent Q (30); Twister Bi (20); Keystone Velocity (18); Crazy Wow (15); MarionMarauder (11); Pure Country (9); Lost In Time (7); Filibuster Hanover, Fourth Dimension,Resolve (6); Alarm Detector, Darlinonthebeach (5); Huntsville, Nike Franco N(4); Bill’s Man, Fiftydallarbill, Phaetosive (3); Devious Man, Easy LoverHanover, Kissin In The Sand (2); All Bets Off, Beckhams Z Tam, Bit Of A LegendN, International Moni (1).